ORANGE PARK – Gary Goble will key his microphone on March 28 and provide dispatch with a code 10-7, followed by 10-42. With that, he will be retired as the town’s police chief.

Code 10-7 means out of service. Code 10-42 means ending the tour of duty.

The final act for a police officer is more ceremonial than necessary. It’s a brief moment where everyone on duty can pause to reflect on his 35-year law enforcement career.

Because the job of keeping the community safe is never-ending, everyone will get back to work.

Goble will concentrate on tee times and selling shaved ice from his family’s Hawaii Fyve-Sno food trailer. One thing is certain: Goble won’t slow down.

“I’ve got some opportunities that have been presented to me. We’ll see where they go,” he said. “I’m not sure what I’m going to do yet – if anything.”

Goble started with the Clay County Sheriff’s Office in 1989 before he moved to Orange Park in 1993. His retirement countdown clock began five years ago. He’s proud of his department’s growth, especially how it adjusted and embraced modern techniques.

“We’ve come such a long way,” Goble said. “I came here in 1993 and worked my way through the ranks. And since I took over as chief almost 13 years ago, I think the department has done a great job just keeping up with technology. Our equipment and our fleet are in so much better shape than it ever was. I think we’ve done a lot of good things – not just me, but all of us. I’ve got a lot of good people working around me.”

The town is accepting applications to replace Goble. According to the town’s website, an “ideal” candidate must at least have a Bachelor’s degree in criminology, criminal justice, police administration or public administration; five years experience as a police officer and at least two years experience as an assistant police chief; completed training in the FBI National Academy, Florida Department of Law Enforcement Leadership Program or other related training; and meet state police minimum stands and meet requirements of periodic in-service training and weaponry qualifications.

The town also believes its next chief should be approachable by all residents and fellow officers, maintain high standards and work to prevent crime.

The application deadline is March 10. Additional information can be found at townoforangepark.com. Click the police department tab, then Join Our Team.

Goble said he and his wife Tamara are looking forward to the next chapter in his life.

“I do have the Hawaii Fyve-Sno snow cone trailer that I work at a lot of events and things on the weekends, as well as schools and football games,” he said. “That keeps me pretty busy. So we may do that for a little bit. And we plan on doing some traveling. We both like to golf, and we want to play a lot of different golf courses and do some things that we didn’t get to do while we were working.”

While he will be Code 7 as the police chief, he will be Code 8 – in service – for a life away from the badge.